The Washington Independent

Posts Tagged uninsured

Medical Experts Highlight Chief Flaw of Dems’ Health Reforms

By | 03.30.10 | 12:39 pm

The New York Times today points out the chief flaw in the sweeping health reform bills passed by Congress last week: Health care spending might be unsustainable, it might be threatening to bankrupt the entire country, but there’s very little in the legislation that tackles the public’s severe More…

Reconciliation Bill on Its Way to the White House

By | 03.25.10 | 9:02 pm

For the second time this week, the House tonight passed a health care reform bill designed to complement the larger reform package that President Obama signed into law Tuesday.

The vote was a technicality. The House had passed the bill Sunday night, sending it over to the Senate. More…

A Bump in the Road on Health Care Reform

By | 03.25.10 | 8:48 am

In short, the Senate parliamentarian has ruled that the health care reconciliation bill moving through the upper chamber this week will have to go back to the House. The New York Times reports:

Senate Democrats had been hoping to defeat all of the amendments proposed by Republicans and

More…

Coburn: No Viagra for Rapists, Child Molesters

By | 03.24.10 | 1:41 pm

The list of amendments that Republicans are hoping will derail the health reconciliation bill moving through the Senate this week is an entertaining read, if only because it so clearly illustrates the GOP’s strategy of forcing Democrats to go on the record to vote against some pretty odd things.

The More…

Senate Health Care Debate: The Week Ahead

By | 03.23.10 | 10:42 am

Just off the phone with the offices of both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), where spokespeople outlined the Senate’s path to finalizing the health reforms passed by the House over the weekend. The rundown:

1) President Obama at 11:15 this morning will More…

What If Reconciliation Fails?

By | 03.22.10 | 10:55 am

With the House last night passing its health care reconciliation bill, the measure moves to the Senate this week, where Democratic leaders are claiming they’ve got the 51 votes needed to pass it. We’ll take them at their word. But just in case, it’s worth noting More…

Through Tears, Tea Party Activists Vow to Keep Fighting Health Care Reform

By | 03.22.10 | 10:40 am

The Tea Party activists huddled on the south lawn of the Capitol got the news of health care reform’s passage in the cruelest way. As their enthusiasm had flagged, a small group of pro-health care reform activists had nestled into space right next to the Capitol wall. Outnumbered ten to More…

Gingrich: Civil Rights Laws Weren’t Worth the Political Price

By | 03.21.10 | 12:21 pm

Of the many reasons to oppose health care reform, this is probably the worst. From today’s Washington Post:

Former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich said Obama and the Democrats will regret their decision to push for comprehensive reform. Calling the bill “the most radical social experiment . . .

More…

Saturday Health Reform Wrap

By | 03.21.10 | 11:58 am

After a Saturday full of partisan bickering, presidential arm-twisting, rowdy protests, and naked racism, the House stands ready to vote today on a historic, $940 billion health care reform proposal that would leave 95 percent of the country’s population with health coverage More…

A Strange Call From Reid to Vote on the Public Option … Later

By | 03.19.10 | 3:43 pm

What began as one of the most controversial issues of the months-long health care debate continues to be so: The public option — a government-backed insurance plan designed to compete with private companies — wasn’t included as part of the Democrats’ reconciliation bill, sending some liberals More…